Ibuprofen (Motrin.RTM.) is one of the more recent commonly prescribed, non-steroidal drugs used in the treatment of arthritis. It is used in dosages of 300-400 mg. tablets up to 8 per day. The taste of this propionic acid derivative is extremely repulsive, which makes it necessary to coat the tablet or to capsulate the product. It is very difficult to veil this taste by other added flavors in syrup formulations. Therefore, the practical, effective dosage are coated tablets or capsules which in view of the dosage requirement are of large size and thus present a difficulty of swallowing, particularly for children or older people.
It has now been found that the novel p-hydroxybenzaldehyde semicarbazone ester of ibuprofen II provides an effective form of the active parent compound. Compound II, is nearly tasteless and thus permits the production of liquid forms for administration specifically suitable for the pediatric or geriatric patient.
The ethyl ester of ibuprofen is named in U.S. Pat. No. 3,228,831. This ester is an oil and its taste qualities are not markedly different from the parent ibuprofen.